One Way Ticket Time Machine
by Sugar Spice Rush
Summary: Alice passes away in a car accident, but Shun still can't get over it. Mysterious anomalies appear in the city, including a person who says Alice's death wasn't accidental. By going back into time to stop everything, Shun discovers secrets beyond reality, including ones about Alice herself.
1. Accident, Coincidence, Proof

**SSR: Hi everyone! I'm a new author! Kind of excited but scared at the same time.**

**Runo: Don't be! Fear only leads you nowhere.**

**Marucho: And this is only your first story.**

**SSR; Thanks guys. Not much to say, but this is the first chapter of a story I'm working on, and I think the first chapter is a little scary. Oh no, I must be scaring everyone away.**

**Dan: Yeah right.**

**Runo: Why don't we get started instead and see how it goes?**

**Marucho: Agreed again. Sugar Spice Rush only owns the story but not Bakugan.**

* * *

**Chapter One**

**Accident, Coincidence, Proof**

...

...

Loud traffic echoed all over the streets of Wardington. The honking horns of cars, the tweeting of crossing signals, and the chatter of people everywhere. It was a miracle that Alice could still catch up to Shun in this chaos.

"Shun, wait up!"

Shun, standing impatiently at the edge of the sidewalk, turned around to see his girlfriend run in his direction. "Seriously, Alice? You're telling me to wait? I have no choice here **but** to wait."

"I didn't mean wait for the light to change. I meant waiting for me!" Alice caught up and rested her hand on Shun's shoulder. "We're still going to the shrine, right? Despite all the traffic?"

"You bet. I purposely canceled my badminton training today with Dan and the others just for this shrine visit. Also, Dan dropped out last minute, so it's twice a good thing."

"How could you say that?! It's not like you deliberately caused it to happen."

"But it's a good thing, though." The traffic light flashed green, and Shun took the first step down. "Hurry up, Alice. I don't want to miss out on the fortune telling."

"What fortune telling?" asked Alice, catching up to Shun before the light changed.

"Remember last time when I went to the shrine and shook the container of bamboo sticks? This time, they have _omikuji_, so I can just get a paper slip rather than a bamboo stick. But it's the same either way."

_Omikuji...random paper fortunes, _thought Alice. _I should get one for myself, too._

Shun and Alice began dating about year ago, aided by Dan and Runo, who were unofficial matchmakers. Everyone at Bayview High were envious of their relationship, and every person who tried to break them apart failed miserably. Even Dan and Runo couldn't help but compare themselves to Shun and Alice.

"What kind of fortune do you want told, Shun?"

"I don't know." Shun stopped halfway in the road. _She's right. I postponed all my plans just for today, but I still don't know what I'm going to do._ "I think I'll just-"

"Watch out!"

Shun looked up to see a delivery truck driving straight for him, but Alice pulled him to the other side before anything happened. "That was so close. Thanks, Alice." But Alice stared at the delivery truck as it drove off into the distance. "Hello? Earth to Alice? Can you hear me?"

"W-What?"

"Are you okay?"

She looked back and put her hand on her cheek to feel the cold. "I'm fine. I could've lost you forever out there."

"I know. Speaking of 'lost'," Shun took out slips of paper from his coat pocket. "I haven't picked one regarding lost articles or love yet. Do you think I'll get them this time?"

Alice smiled and answered, "Honestly, you don't need to know your fortune on love. It's pretty obvious."

"You're righted." chuckled Shun. "But if I get anything else, I'm still content. Let's go."

A few more blocks and streets later, Shun and Alice arrived at the rocky stairs that led up to the shrine. The traffic was still high and loud, and they were glad that finally get away from it.

"Hopefully, I pick something good because all my other slips say 'blessing'. That's very vague." Shun complained. Every time he went to the shrine, all the fortunes he picked said 'blessing' or 'half-blessing.'

"So? It's still a blessing. What were you expecting?"

"Something more than that, like a 'great blessing.' Are you going to pick anything?"

"Sure. I'll give it a try." Alice looked up at the gate and saw a black cat walking back and forth on the top horizontal beam. "What is that?!"

Shun looked up as well. "Just a black cat. Someone should get rid of it, though."

"No one's going to go up there, you know."

"Fine. Let's get moving." Shun walked up first but turned around to see Alice still looking up. _What is she still doing here? She doesn't look well today. _"Alice, what is going on with you?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing. I'm just superstitious." Alice ran up to Shun immediately with he shivers. _He's right. What __**is**__ going on with me?_

The first thing they saw up in the main hall was a long line of people waiting for their turn for the _omikuji_. "I guess we have no choice but to line up now because there are more people coming," Shun declared. He raced over to the end of the line and saw a familiar face. "Dan?"

"Shun! What are you doing here?"

"I should be asking you the same thing! Is this why you called off tennis training?"

"What do **you** think?"

As Shun and Dan argued, Alice came over and apologized. "Sorry about the guys, Runo. I hope you don't mind."

"Well, I was about to yell at Dan for forgetting about me, but since you're here, let's chat! What are you doing here?"

"Not that question!" cried Alice. "Anyway, Shun purposely canceled all his plans just for this important day at the shrine, and he invited me. I guess we're all here to pick fortunes."

"Really? That's great!" Runo cheered. "Anyway did you hear about the guy at school who broke the school's best cross-country record?"

And the conversations went on...

...

...

"I'll take...this one."

Shun grabbed the slip in the box of the seventh row and column. Alice paid a coin as well but grabbed a random slip. Together with Dan and Runo, they made their way to the benches under a cherry tree and sat down. "What did you get, Dan?"

"Let's see." Dan opened the paper and skimmed. "Just a 'blessing' in 'romance'. I'm serious about needing this if Runo and I are going to be together forever."

Runo gasped and glared at him. "How could you say that?" She opened her slip and read out loud. "I have a 'curse' in 'romance'?! This is all your fault, Dan!"

Seeing that a fight was inevitable, Shun went to stop Dan, and Alice went to stop Runo. "That's enough, you two." announced Shun. "My fortune says..."

"Yeah?"

"...a 'future blessing'? Categorized in 'people waiting for'? I don't get it."

"That doesn't make much sense." Runo commented. "Are you waiting for anyone?"

Dan nodded. "Certainly, you're not expecting your father's return, and your mother isn't going to come back."

"I know. It must refer to something else. Alice, your turn."

"Okay." Suddenly, a raven swooped down from nowhere and snatched the fortune out of her hands. It landed on a branch on the cherry tree and stared straight at Alice. "Give it back!"

Dan shook his head. "It don't think it's going to give it back to you. Maybe you should get another fortune."

"You can't do that!" Runo snapped. "Here. I'm going to throw a pebble at it." She may have hit the raven by the beak, but the raven didn't let go. Runo gave up after a few more pebbles. "The raven won't budge. It's like it doesn't want you to see your fortune."

"It's okay, I don't mind. I guess I'll-"

Miraculously, the raven opened it beak, letting the rolled-up piece of paper descend onto Alice's palm. "T-That was weird."

"So what did you get?" asked Shun. Alice unraveled the paper but didn't respond. "Alice, what's-"

She flipped the paper over for Shun to see. "I have 'great curse', categorized in 'lost articles'."

Runo covered her mouth in shock. "No wonder that raven took your paper away. It was going to be a bad fortune."

"Man, that raven is psychic." Dan added. "What else is there?"

Shun took the slip and examined it front and back. "Seeing the severity of your fortune, why don't you tie it onto the pine tree behind the fortune stand? It's supposed to postpone your fortune for a while to prevent it from sticking with you."

"Hmm...why not? Runo, you want to go with me?"

"Sure! I want to get rid of this bad fortune, too."

Alice and Runo walked over to the pine tree, which appeared snow-white with the many bad fortunes tied onto it. Alice looked at her fortune and thought, _First the black cat, then the raven and the bad fortune. I'm scared of what's going to happen next._ She shook her head and proceeded to the tree.

"I wonder how that raven knew you'd get a bad fortune. That's bad luck right there already."

"I know. I saw a black cat this morning, too."

"Seriously?! You know, if things come in a trinity, **then** you know it's something bad."

"I hope it doesn't..."

...

...

"Shun, we can go now. See you later, Runo!"

"Bye Alice!"

Alice held onto Shun's hand on the way out from the main hall. "So, did you tie your slip onto the tree?" he asked.

"I did. I hope this method really-" Alice looked up to see the black cat still perching on the Torii gate. Suddenly, it jumped down on her and left scratch marks on her arms. "Shun, I feel like this is an omen. There's been too much bad luck today."

"Don't worry. As long as you tied the slip to the tree, you'll be fine."

"But I-"

"Oh snap. The traffic is worse than I thought." Shun yelled when they reached the sidewalk. The traffic light just turned red, and many cars waited in the lanes. To make things worse, the lights wouldn't change until **every** car crossed the road.

"Would you say it's bad luck to have such crowded traffic today?" asked Alice.

Shun looked at her and shook his head. "No. Traffic has always been this busy. You know, Alice. You've been acting really weird today ever since some truck almost hit me." He put his hand on her forehead. "You don't have a fever. Maybe I shouldn't have asked you to come with the shrine with me today."

"Don't say that! I know you asked me so we can spend time together, **but** It was **my **decision to come with you today, so let **me **handle it. Okay?"

"Fine." The traffic light flashed green again, and Shun took the first step down again. "Hurry up, Alice. This traffic light changes fast if it doesn't sense anyone moving."

"I'm coming." By the time Shun arrived at the other sidewalk past the center divide, Alice still hadn't stepped down onto the road. The crossing signal tweeted faster, and Alice crossed the road right when the light changed.

"Alice, hurry up! Just sprint over!"

"Wait! I dropped something."

"It can wa-"

Shun turned around to see Alice bent down picking up something, but a car sped right in her direction. "Alice, watch out!"

"What?"

Unlike last time, where Alice was only steps away from Shun, he was all the way on the other side and could nothing to save her. A mysterious flash of yellow appeared, delaying Shun's response even more. _What was that? _"Alice, no!"

Too late.

The car hit and ran off, leaving Alice unconscious and stained in a pool of her blood. Other people stood by staring at the body. "It can't be," Shun panicked."First the black cat, then the raven fortune slip, and now this. What's going on?"

What intrigued him even more was the item that Alice's hand held onto and wouldn't let go of.

* * *

**SSR: I definitely scared everyone away, didn't I?**

**Dan: No, we're all still here.**

**Runo: For certain.**

**SSR: Thanks again guys. It's only my first chapter, so all the other details will come in later. Pretty please leave a review?**

**Marucho: Show some support!**


	2. Dead On Arrival

**SSR: Thanks for all the reviews on my first chapter! As a present, I updated this earlier!**

**Runo: You're five days old now!**

**SSR: Hopefully not too old. To the reviews. [C****up of Violet Tea], if I put the death in the later chapters, then I'd have to push everything back. Superstitions play a major role. [****fia3striker], thanks for liking the plot! Oh good. You didn't get scared away. Was that a good cliffhanger? I hope every five days is quick enough. [alice . kazami ****. 58], glad you think it's a good start! The summary says it clear what happened to Alice, but the rest of the story won't talk about Alice that way. [****Troth], glad you liked it too! Thanks for the welcome! [****InnocentDiamond], finally get to talk! The summary may have spoiled Alice's part, but definitely not the others. [****Cherry-Tree], as long as you leave me reviews, I'm content. All you do is pay a small amount and pick a random slip/stick/fortune. That's where the title comes in. [****Flopi216], thanks for being my first reviewer! I guess my story really is amazing for a scary first chapter. Greetings from USA!**

**Marucho: (glass of water) Here! You must be thirsty!**

**SSR: Thank you, Marucho. I'll update this every five days. This chapter and all others will be shorter. I want to work on other stories, too.**

**Dan: Speaking of stories, Sugar Spice Rush**** doesn't own Bakugan but owns the plot.**

* * *

**Chapter Two**

**Dead On Arrival**

...

...

One the paramedics whom Shun called over arrived, they immediately lifted Alice onto a rolling stretcher and carried her into the ambulance. Before they left, the police, whom the paramedics called, arrived and immediately snapped crime photos.

"Looks at those bloody tire tracks. The vehicle sped off."

"This literally **was **a hit and run. Doesn't even look like the driver stopped his car at all."

"I'm more concerned about the pool of blood..."

Shun, on the other hand, was in no mood to talk. He stared at the paramedics who hooked Alice onto an IV and a breathing machine. _It__'__s all my fault. I should__'__ve crossed the street with her together_. One of the doors was slightly shut, and Shun noticed Alice's clenched fist. "Excuse, sir. May I go with you? I'm...uh...her-"

"Sorry, but this is a critical condition. I advise that you stay and wait for the police to ask you for a report of what happened," one of the paramedics replied hurriedly.

The crowd around the pool of blood attracted everyone from everywhere over to see what happened. Some people who just came from fortune telling at the shrine held their hands up and prayed. Shun still couldn't believe what happened.

"Hey man! I heard there was an accident!" Dan rand across the street over to Shun with Runo with the assistance of an officer directing the traffic. "What is this? The victim's going to need blood transfusions."

"Who got hurt?" Runo asked. Shun continued to stare at the pool of blood palely. "Shun, what happened-"

"Alice got hit."

Dan and Runo were speechless.

"And it's all my fault. I should've-"

"Dude, it's not your fault. I heard the officers mutter that it was a hit and run, and the vehicle didn't even **stop **to check. It's the driver's fault, you hear me?"

Runo elbowed Dan on his side. "Ssh! Now's not the time. Where's Alice now?"

"In the ambulance. They're about to drive her to probably the hospital two block from here."

"Good idea." Dan reached for a set of keys in his pockets. "I'll drive, but my car's parked up at the top of the hill, so-"

"Just get me there." Shun interrupted.

Runo escorted Dan away across the street after hearing the anger and irritation in Shun's voice. Looking at Alice one last time, Shun saw another flash of yellow at the moment when the paramedic closed the back doors. _Just like when I turned around to call on Alice. What is it? Once is probably an accidental sighting, twice is a coincidence, but if I see it a third time..._

Shun shook his head and quickly caught up with Dan and Runo.

...

...

"I'm sorry."

By now, Shun was used to hearing all these apologies from the doctors. This one was no different, yet there was something not right about this one. It was so..._abrupt_.

"The girl passed away the moment we attempted blood transfusion."

"I see."

While Shun stood still in front of his seat staring into nothing, Runo covered her mouth in shock, and Dan pulled on strand of his hair. The surgeon went back into the operating room to clean up. "Shun, is there anything we can do for you right now?" Runo asked.

"Yeah, man. You'll need all the support you-"

"I'm fine. It's my fault. You two don't need to do anything for me."

"But Shun, at least let Dan and I tell-"

"Holy macaroni!"

Distracted by the abrupt exclamation of a nurse down the hall, the trio ran to the front entrance to see what the nurse saw. Up in the fair blue sky was a dark but translucent silhouette of a giant bird flying above. It darkened the sky and sunlight like sunglasses. With everyone looking up at the anomaly in the sky, no work was being done.

"What on earth is this?"

"Somebody has to be playing a joke here."

"Wait! What's **that**?"

People then looked the other away in the direction of the shrine. Glowing red fireballs flew everywhere like falling shooting stars, ready to burn and destroy. But they somehow burned themselves out, causing no damage.

The head of the hospital entered the lobby and shouted, "Everyone! Go back to work! You can all observe something as nonscientific as that during your own leisure time." And that said, the staff in the hospital went back to work.

"Looks like a bad omen to me. Reminds me of the raven that 'stole' Alice's fortune." Dan commented, not realizing that the said event happened not too long ago. "Uh, sorry about that, Shun."

"No need to apologize. I'd prefer to be by myself for now."

Runo tugged on Dan's arm. "If he says so, then we should leave. You should go back to badminton training. Bye Shun."

Shun sighed and waved them goodbye as he watched the surgeons roll Alice's body out of the operating room. In between the time two of the surgeons switched sides to undo the IV, he saw a flash of yellow for the third time._ That__'__s it. No longer was that a coincidence, but I don__'__t know what it__'__s supposed to mean. And why am I seeing that only on Alice?_

In addition to the spontaneous sight of yellow, he also saw Alice's clenched fist. _I almost forgot that. It was because Alice dropped something and picked it up that stalled her and caused the accident. _At first, he was afraid to touch Alice after the hit, but then the authorities came and took Alice away, so Shun never had the chance to check it out. "Excuse me, doctors. Did you find anything in her hand?"

"Her hand? We haven't checked since surgery and blood transfusion were our top priorities. Now that she's...well...you know, I guess it wouldn't hurt."

"Thank you so much."

The kind surgeon gently pried Alice's fingers open and removed a crumpled piece of paper. "You're the boy who gave the receptionist her family information, right? Thank you so much. I believe her grandfather's coming, and unless you want to stay, you're free to go home."

"Thanks again. I think I'll stay until Dr. Gehabich arrives."

That gave Shun time to think about and try to bring together just exactly what had happened today in this short amount of time.

...

...

It was six in the afternoon. Shun originally planned to stay for a couple minutes to tell Dr. Gehabich what happened when he arrived at the hospital, but it just dragged on the entire afternoon. Shun purposely canceled all his plans just for this important day at the shrine with Alice, but nothing went the way it was supposed to.

_This morning, I almost got hit by a car if it weren__'__t for Alice, but from that moment on, I knew something wasn__'__t right about her. Then the black cat, raven, bad fortune, and so on. It feels like everything bad that happened today was premeditated, all planned for specifically Alice, by why?_

Walking down the streets of Wardington in the cold, evening breezes, Shun suddenly remembered the crumple paper that he was so concerned about before the accident but now almost forgot about. _Is this another omen? With Alice alive, I actually __**care **__about certain things. But now she__'__s gone, and I completely forgot this crumpled paper was with me._

He lifted a corner and stopped opening the paper when he saw the design. "I know this stationary. It's the same as the—no, I'm probably imagining things." Shun continued walking and opening the paper, but he only got closer and closer to what he feared. "it can't be..."

Shun pressed the paper against his abdomen and flattened out any other wrinkles. The top half of the paper read 'dai-kyō', and the bottom half read 'usemono'. "'Great curse' and 'lost articles'? It's Alice's bad fortune. I thought I told her pin it to the pine tree. Great...curse...lost...articles...because Alice didn't pin this to the tree, she lost something as great and serious like her life. No way..."

"So you've noticed it too?"

Shocked by a sudden voice speaking to him, Shun turned around and was face to face with a girl with silver hair covered all over with a pink cloak. "W-Who are you? W-What are you talking about?"

"Oh, I almost forgot. You must be Shun." I'm Julie.

"H-Hi Julie. Yeah, that's my name. But how do-"

"And I'm here to tell you that Alice's death wasn't accidental."

Shun blinked a couple times and said, "Of course it wasn't! She didn't pin this fortune on the tree like I told her to."

"No, not that. I mean, somebody planned her death long ago. It **was** premeditated, just like you thought. All these superstitious things were meant to warn her this was coming."

Shun was a little skeptical. After all, he just lost his girlfriend because he invited her to the fortune telling. "How much exactly do you know?"

Julie smirked cleverly but cheerfully. "The hints, fortunes, today's anomalies, you name it. Oh, and one more thing." She looked around, put her hand to the side of her mouth, and whispered, "And who Alice's murderer might be."

Now **that** caught Shun's full attention.

* * *

**SSR: I hope Julie's appearance wasn't too random.**

**Dan: No time traveling?**

**Runo: Maybe we should concern ourselves with the flying raven.**

**Marucho: And fireballs.**

**Dan: You did _not_ have a third anomaly!**

**SSR: Oh shoot, I need to fix that. ****Also****, I added story details and upcoming ideas on my profile and made an account on {ask . fm} (it's a website) for fun, so you can ask me questions about anything or just check up on me there. The link's on my profile.**

******Marucho: ****Review in the meantime!**


	3. Deep Inner Thoughts

**SSR: Third chapter! I hope this story isn't going to fast for you. I already planned this to end up near 20 or more chapters.**

**Marucho: That's a lot of chapters.**

**SSR: I was looking through newspapers and found an ad for a charm bracelet, which inspired me. Time to do reviews. [InnocentDiamond], I'll talk about the flash of yellow later. Groups of three refers to Chapter 1's title, remember? Everyone's talking about the third anomaly. It doesn't all have to be in one chapter. The cloak's for technical reasons. [****Cup of Violet Tea], I haven't seen any of those scenes in REAL life. Thanks for being honest! The raven's kind of like the sunglasses effect, only it's not stiff and just a floating shape. Julie will explain more details soon. [****fia3striker], you liked the major twists, right? I don't think I'll scare anyone anymore. I guarantee that Alice is NOT a drug lord. Keep guessing for now. [****RosesOfTruth], new reviewer! I'll update every five days, and most chapters end in cliffhangers. I'm glad we like the same genres. Superstitions and anomalies play major roles. [****Cherry-Tree], first person to notice two anomalies instead of three! I'll make up for it soon. Shun's mother isn't important, but she might appear, since we're time travelling. Julie doesn't know much either. [****Flopi216], the person who planned Alice's death will come a long time later. Even Julie doesn't even know half the story.**

**Runo: Aren't you doing a Halloween story as well?**

**SSR: No, but I am doing a new story soon! It's just that the first chapter events coincide with Halloween, and nothing else. Maybe a double upload on Halloween. I'll add more story ideas on my profile.**

**Dan: As always, Sugar Spice Rush doesn't own Bakugan.**

* * *

**Chapter Three**

**Deep Inner Thoughts**

...

...

"But why?"

That was a good question.

"I...I don't know. I was-"

"**First** of all, Julie." Of course it was natural for Shun to be irritated when told that Alice's death wasn't accidental, but said that it was related to these scientifically inexplicable anomalies, he went overboard. "Who are you? What is going on? When did all this start? Where did you come from? And why is all this happening?!"

Julie was on the verge of crying, and Shun's harsh voice didn't do any better. "I'll start from the beginning. I, Julie Makimoto, am from how you'd call an 'alternate dimension' in which we Guardians of Time watch over time pass by smoothly without any tampering. You with me so far?"

"Pretty much..."

"Good. Now recently, my superior discovered that something was wrong with the time-space continuum and found out that Alice's death was planned ahead of time. Originally, she was supposed to die later of natural causes, as most people would. But we fast-forwarded at little and saw the problem. **Then **we rewinded and started noticing little details that lead to this problem. You **still** with me so far?"

"You made such a big problem sound like finding a badly-recording scene in a video." Shun replied honestly. "Now that I know why you're here, can I ask why you're specifically looking for **me**?"

"The problem lies within Alice, but we're only allowed to rewind or fast-forward a certain amount of time at a time, we couldn't go deeper into the past to find what really happened. But," From the pocket of her coat under the cloak, Julie pulled out a golden chain bracelet. "we **can** travel back in time step by step with this. Look familiar?"

Shun took the bracelet and examined carefully. "It looks like the charm bracelet I gave to Alice for her sixteenth birthday, only without all the charms. Where did you get this? Where did the charms go?"

Julie took it back and dangled it freely. "I found this on Alice when I was in the hospital, minutes before her grandfather arrived. I can choose to invisible to certain people, that's why. The charms, I don't know about at all. Close your eyes, lay the bracelet in the palm or your hand, and think deeply."

_Can I really go back in time to save Alice? Is what Julie telling me all real?_ Dubious of his decision to leave the present and change the past, Shun reached his hand out to grab the bracelet but didn't do anything with it. "When exactly are we traveling to?"

"Well, since you met Alice a year ago, I'll try to make us land during that time period, but you better hurry. I have a feeling these anomalies are connected with you somehow. Look."

Shun looked up to see a discolored long streak in the sky, turning from clear blue to rosy pink and other colors. "First the raven, then the fireballs, now this aurora. I accept fate. Here's goes nothing." He placed Alice's bracelet in his hand, held his palm out, and closed his eyes. _I want to go back in time to save Alice, I want to go back in time to save Alice, I want to go back in time to save Alice..._

"That's the spirit!" Julie placed her fingers on her temples and focused. Energy flowed into the bracelet and made it glow, creating a portal hovered above the two and shone light on them. "Here goes nothing..."

...

...

_Splish...splash...splish...splash..._

Water hit up against the rocks along the shore. The weathermen said tonight would have high tide late at night and the morning, but the ocean water wasn't all that patient. This time of the month begged spring tide to come. Two people stood at the top of the cliffs, safe from the rising water.

"Where are we?" asked Shun, staring into the vast blueness of the ocean. It was dark, and the moon was only a slender crescent. No sun was in sight, but it was a little bright to be midnight. "I don't recall this place."

"Let me see." Julie took our her pocket watch and turned a few dials. "We're officially three years before the time we opened the time traveling portal. Does that mean anything to you?"

"Three years...and a beach...I don't know. I've only been to a beach on weekends with my mom. Should we walk down?"

"If you can **find** a way down, why not?"

As they carefully walked down the rock formations, Shun recalled a memory. "Hang on. Alice and I **have** been to a beach before. I think we dated for two months when she offered to take me to the beach. It was a memorable, beautiful sunny day..."

Once they reached the bottom of the shore, Julie stared into the ocean again and murmured, "I wonder how it feels to ride a sailboat out in the ocean."

"I wonder, too." Suddenly, a _splash_ in the water caught his attention. "Did you hear that? It sounds like rocks being thrown into the water." Shun ran down the shore and saw multiple boulders along the shores . On the tallest boulder sat a girl with her knees to her chest, tossing pebbles into the ocean. "Hey! What are you doing?"

"Huh?" She picked up her pebbles and slid down the boulder. "I guess I'm not the only person here who does this as well."

Now Shun was the confused one, but he was more confused about who this girl was. Even in the dark, he could still tell she had orange hair that looked brown against the blue ocean. Her skin was as glowing and warm as the moon. "Alice?"

She giggled sweetly. "How d'you know my name?"

_Oh right. I didn't know her three years ago yet._ "Just a guess. It reminded me of when Alice in Wonderland was lost and had nothing to-"

"Shun!" Julie caught up behind him, panting heavily. "You know that Alice doesn't know you yet, right? She can't see me, so see if you can talk some stuff out of her for now. I'll be doing other things."

"Got it. Be safe." He faced Alice again, but Shun couldn't focus with the awkwardness of them being complete strangers around. "Do you always come here every night?"

"Sometimes. It's really relaxing. What's your name?"

"Shun."

"Hi Shun. Do **you **always come out here by yourself?"

"Well..." _How am I going talk anything out of her if we have nothing in common?_ "Isn't that the whole point of going here? To relax by yourself and express your inner thoughts?"

"You sound like a really deep and thoughtful person."

He chuckled. "That's exactly what someone called me. Deep and thoughtful."

"Who is it?"

_I wish I could say 'you', but I just can't._ "My late girlfriend."

"Oh...sorry to hear." Alice walked over to Shun and asked, "What **do** you exactly do out here?"

"You really want to know?"

"Come on. I'm bored. I only have three pebbles left."

_Three pebbles...what a trinity._ "Something like this." He stepped forward a little enough to avoid the water. Putting his hands around his mouth, Shun yelled, "I wish my girlfriend was still alive!"

"Oh, I see." Alice step forward so she lined up with Shun. "I wish other people wouldn't ignore me!"

"Say what?"

Although Alice enjoyed the feeling yelling anything she wanted, she yelled out one of her most deep, inner thoughts in front of a stranger. "N-Nothing."

"Alice, I'm serious. We may not know each other-" Saying that hurt Shun's feeling a lot. "-but if something's wrong, then you should do more than just saying it out loud."

Alice sighed, knowing there was no return. "I wish, but some things are strictly left up to fate to decide."

"Like what?"

She turned her head toward him, staring yearningly into his amber eyes. "There are times in which I feel like people want me gone..."

...

...

"Stop here!"

Julie ordered Marucho, ironically her superior, to stop rewinding. "Are you sure this is where you sent Shun? Three years seems too far back."

"I did my best. I'm not as skilled as you are."

"That's true." He fast-forwarded through a couple scenes. "Looks like Alice's going through a mid-life crisis."

"What...?"

"As far as I know, it's not a typical crisis about what to do with your life. Something **deeper** is going on here. This started before three years ago, but doesn't show up until here. Kato, I need your help."

"Yes, Master Marucho."

_What kind of mid-life crisis was Alice going through? _Julie thought, unaware of what Alice already told Shun.

* * *

**Runo: I _think_ understand what a mid-life crisis is...**

**Dan: Traveling in time back to a beach was pretty random.**

**Marucho: A very relaxing point to start, actually.**

**Dan: _Of course_ you'd say that.**

**SSR: If you look at the charm bracelet, four of the charms are dolphin, turtle, Buddha's shell, and anchor. All maritime items. Didn't Julie take out Alice's charm bracelet earlier?**

**Dan: Cheap robber.**

**Shun: Name caller.**

**Runo: Please just shut up!**

**SSR: The bracelet's called "All the Luck in the World" Lucky Charm Bracelet. You can probably find images online. Please review guys!**

**Everyone: See you all on Halloween!**


	4. Minor Manefestations

**SSR: Happy Halloween! Double upload today!**

**Runo: (Hatsune Miku) My outfit is cliche.**

**Dan: (NV attire) I'm fine the way I am.**

**Julie: (Index Librorum Prohibitorum) This is uncomfortable.**

**Marucho: (NV attire) This is all I had.**

**SSR: And I cosplayed Shirai Kuroko from Index/Railgun. [****MagicxMusicxMelody], thanks for the greeting! I hope it wasn't too much to read. It's the only way for Shun to figure out everything. Alice's inner thoughts go way deeper than that. [****Cup of Violet Tea], I heard of but I don't know what it's about. I didn't know what else to name Julie's 'organization'. There'll be more romantic scenes later. If the time span is long enough, Alice probably won't remember. [****RosesOfTruth], that has been said, but sometimes traveling back to the change the past is the only way the future will be what is it now. He won't be going back to present day for a long time. [****Cherry-Tree], it's like seeing someone's past and never realizing he/she was like this. It was sad for me to write them speaking as strangers, too. The number three will pop back up often. I'm using the charms as a part of the story. [****InnocentDiamond], I have a lot of ideas for this story and really want to use them. Julie knows nothing about the charms. Sometime before sunrise, maybe. IQ-wise, yes. Marucho's "obviously" smarter than Julie.**

**Julie: You had three parties at school today, but are totally immune to sugar rush.**

**Dan: That is, until the hot chocolate from-**

**SSR: Dan, don't even. Just continue reading.**

* * *

**Chapter Four**

******Minor Manifestations**

...

...

Alice was never like this when Shun dated her. Could he really have changed her past life to to Alice he knew as of present-day today?

"Who wants you gone?" Shun asked. "Maybe I can help."

"There are too many people to name, but it seems like **everyone** doesn't want me around." Alice sighed. "My classmates, for example. No one wants to be partners with me for group projects, and they're always whispering like talking behind my back."

_Three years is a long time back. I can't let her commit suicide now or let others commit homicide or else she'll never exist._ "Why don't you start with telling me what kind of person you are?"

"My personality? Oh okay. First thing is that I'm a very optimistic person. Come on." Alice climbed up to the tallest boulder and then helped Shun up. "It feels weird when I talk to people while standing. You must be tired from all the walking."

"Oh, I'm tired, but not from walking. Since you're quite the optimistic person, have you ever taken the initiative by talking to those people? Maybe they don't like you because you don't talk."

"I **do** talk, but no one wants to listen. I raise my hand in the class all the time so they'll hear my voice, but it's just not the same as conversation talk-"

"Um, Alice. If you're going to 'show off' all the time all the time by answering questions, that's only going to make them hate you even more."

Alice gasped, not because Shun told her about a possible consequence. "How did you know? Some girl in my class came up to me during lunch and told me to shut up in class or else she'll shut me up for me."

"Exactly." _But Alice, I don't understand how all of this could possibly be related to your death three years later. It makes no sense._

"Maybe I shouldn't talk to much. Anyway, more on my personality. Maybe my optimism annoys those people, but who cares. I'm sweet, care of others, respectful of elders, anything you'd expect from a straight-A's student."

"Straight-A's student. I was expecting that."

"Well, I'm an only child, and my grandfather expects much from me." She rested her chin on her intertwined fingers. "It's like they see something in me that's worth hating. Why?"

Shun knew this conversation wasn't progressing anywhere. "Look. Don't even care about what they say or do to you at all. Maybe showing off isn't bad. It only proves that what they're doing has no effect on you."

Alice smiled weakly and nodded. "You're right." She slid down the boulder and faced Shun. "I'm really fortunate to be able to meet and talk to you. I feel like I've rediscovered something in me that's been long ignored."

Shun slid down his boulder as well. "No need to thank me. It irks me every time I see a person who's upset. You sure you're all better now."

"I'm sure." Alice held her right pinkie out to Shun, who stared at it cluelessly. "What? Don't you know what a pinkie promise is?"

"Oh, uh, **that**. Sorry, it's was so abrupt. Pinkie promise for what?"

"For being my friend."

At this early stage, Shun didn't know if he should be friends or just acquaintances with Alice. This **was** three years ago. He hooked his right pinkie with hers and said, "Me too."

"I'm really glad I met you today. What's your name again?"

"Shun." For fear of changing the past, which'll affect the future, he didn't risk giving his last name.

"Thanks, Shun. You think we'll ever see each other again? I could use another nice walk-and-talk at the beach someday whenever I'm upset."

He looked back between the ocean in the back and Alice's eyes, unsure of how to answer her question. "I don't know. Leave it up to fate to decide. Mostly, we won't since I don't live near here."

"Aw, okay. I should get going." Before Alice walked at least ten feet away toward the way up, she suddenly thought of something and turned around. "Wait, remember when I said I rediscovered something that's been long ignored?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Her cheeks puffed up in thought, and she puckered her lips in hesitation. "I always thought there was something manifesting in me that brought all this bad luck, starting from when I was the first and only person to witness my parents' deaths."

"You what?" Alice's diction and personal story changed everything that Shun was thinking of. _Manifest? Bad luck? Witnessed her parent's deaths? Why say specifically these words and this event?_

"Nothing much. Maybe it's just my parents' absence since then that made me the type of person I am now. See you again someday." Alice walked off toward the rocks where Shun and Julie descended.

_Something was manifesting itself in Alice that caused her to be disliked, avoided, and prejudiced. This is really complicated_. Moments after Alice left, Julie came back, panting heavily again. "Where did you come from?"

"Came...back...from...superiors..." Eventually, Julie caught her breath and spoke normally. "One of my superiors—Marucho, that's his name—said that Alice is facing a mid-life crisis right now, and it's not something typical."

"Would getting disliked, avoided, and prejudiced by all your classmates by an untypical mid-life crisis?"

"Well...it could be. What's in your hand?"

"Huh?" Shun opened his right hand to reveal a golden dolphin charm. "Alice must've given this to me when we made pinkie-promised, but she would have to be a magician to do that."

"Put it on the bracelet I gave you, then."

"Sure. That makes sense." He clasped the dolphin onto one of the bracelet's tiny chain links, and the entire thing started glowing. "What's going on?"

"I think the bracelet's automatically taking you away to another period of time, but I don't know where. It's not in my control. But wait, look at the horizon."

A tiny sliver of light hovered over the horizon, probably the sun rising. "Alice and I have been talking for a long time. I find it weird that she'd say she felt something 'manifest' in her. Why not say she had a bad feeling? Wait, what's in the sky?"

"Maybe she really meant it." Julie looked up and saw decorative streaks of light patterning the sky. "This looks bad. It's like the color-changing aurora we saw before we left. There's a huge dolphin diving in and out of the sky weirdly."

"Like watching a movie with red-blue 3D glasses on. Are these anomalies really connected to me?"

"It's just a feeling. I'll ask Marucho when I have the time. Right now," Like last time, the bracelet created a portal that hovered above them. "Let's see where we're going this time..."

Why Alice said 'something' has 'manifested' itself in her was the popular question.

...

...

"Neeeeeeeigh!"

Alice pressed her feet down tightly on the stirrups and kept a tight grip on the reins. Her horse lost a horseshoe and stopped running, and Alice knew because she her a metal collision sound the right after her horse whined. She got off and went to look for the lost horseshoe.

"Oh horseshoe, where are you? I wish I had a metal detector." Then again, not very often do horseshoes just suddenly fly off. "Oh wow. You landed face up on this pile of grass. Go physics."

She also found some scattered nails on the side and picked them up. While she busied herself with trying to find **every **single nail, Shun and Julie arrived not too far away from her.

"Welcome to a giant of grass." Julie announced. "Quick question: how many charms were on Alice's bracelet total?"

"I...don't...remember..." Shun replied, breaking between the words. "It's been a long time. Why?"

"Maybe it could be a clue to how many times we'll have to travel. Do you recall having a dolphin charm?"

Shun thought about it for a long moment and slowly nodded his head. "I **did** put a dolphin charm on it. The girl at the store said it stood for friendship, since I told her I was only buying it for a 'female' friend. Now I wish I remembered all the other-"

"Excuse me! Can you pick up that nail for me over there?"

Shun and Julie both faced the direction that the voice came from and saw a brown-eyed girl in jockey attire. This time, Shun was careful not to call her name out so suddenly. "Uh, hi. What nail?"

"Down by your feet." By the time both Alice and Shun noticed the broken nail, they both bent down and reached for it, bumping their heads in the process.

"Sorry about that."

"It's my fault. **I'm **sorry."

But for a moment, they just stared at each other, like they knew one another but weren't certain of it.

* * *

**Dan: Alice knows how to ride a horse?**

**SSR: It's not that difficult...**

**Julie: I want to ride a horse too! No, a pony! Like My Little Pony!**

**Marucho: Why is-**

**SSR: Ahem. The medical term is called 'sugar rush', and it's-**

**Dan: Your and your penname's fault! And girls are made of 'sugar and spice' so-**

**SSR: (shuts him up) Ugh. Sugar rush and sugar rage. Don't forget to leave a review! ****Check out my other story Missing Piece if you haven't!**

**Runo and Marucho: Happy Halloween!**


	5. Good Luck and Bad Luck

**SSR: Miss A's new album is out! And it's Red Ribbon Week, so every student-run organization in school is spreading the word of "Say No To Drugs."**

**Runo: Good for you! Now we need to spread the word of "No Bullying," and everything will be a lot better.**

**Julie: But we can't solve every problem at once...**

**SSR: That's an issue there. I think the reviews are more important. [****MagicxMusicxMelody], I did have the judgement band! One of my taller friends was Konori, and a 6th grader was Uiharu. No one has any disease as of now. Strong words always have strong meanings. [****InnocentDiamond], Alice's classmates are just mean bullies, and maintaining optimism is tough. One pinkie promise is enough! You'll see the next "transfer" soon. [****RosesOfTruth], there'll be more curious questions later on. You're right about the charms. I don't know how many I'll use yet. Probably 5-ish. [****Cup of Violet Tea], Shun wouldn't need to help Alice if she _was_ content, would he? I'm literally stalling her problem. [****Cherry-Tree], don't worry. No prior experiences will affect _Alice_. I don't guarantee for Shun. Just remember that the anomaly occurred after Alice left.****  
**

**Marucho: It feels like Shun's still very confused.**

**SSR: That's the whole point. As a friend suggested, I'm going to have a couple of "arcs" (I thought that was a math term :/) each with a different resulting charm. This is a tough story to dig deep into.**

**Julie: It's your own story!**

**SSR: I mean for the readers. Bakugan isn't mine, but read on!**

* * *

**Chapter Five**

******Good Luck and Bad Luck**

...

...

They continued to stare at each other, complete forgetting about the nail in the grass.

"Have I seen you before?" Alice asked. "What are you doing here?"

Knowing he that the **real **first time that Alice met him was at the beach, Shun quickly came up with a lie. "You've probably seen my friend and I around doing quadrat sampling with these various wildflowers out here, that's all."

"Really?" Alice's tone seemed to question the validity of Shun's response. "Maybe I've seen you once or twice. I should get that nail."

"No, I got it." Shun knelt down and picked up the broken nail. "Here."

"Thanks. By the way, my name is-"

"Alice?"

Another mistake. "How did you know?"

And then came another lie. "I see you talk to yourself a lot, and you often mention the name 'Alice'. That's definitely not your horse's name, so I'm guessing..."

Alice giggled and sighed. "Yeah, I talk to myself a lot, and sometimes I talk to my horse as well. It's a mare, and her name's Zhizni, which is means-"

"Life?"

Yet another mistake. "In Russian, yeah. You're really psychic. What's your name?"

_At least __**that**__ proves she doesn't fully remember me_. "Shun. Now before you make anymore suspicious comments about me, I'm going to say that I took a few classes on the Russian language in school, and my quadrat sampling partner speaks decent Russian."

"I see." She placed the nails and horseshoe in her pocket and and gently pulled Zhizni over. "She's very picky. Zhizni won't run without all her horseshoes on."

"She's a mare! Like you said! No offense, but all girls are picky. Even my partner."

Julie suddenly came by and rested her hand heavily on Shun's left shoulder. "I heard that. Again, Alice still can't see me, but you should get more information out of her unlike last time. You're currently a little less than three years from present day. I'll be with my superiors."

Shun brushed his shoulder to tell Julie to go away. "Yeah, I just remembered that she kind of got lost. No worries. I can probably see her from a distance since there aren't tall trees. Did you name your horse Zhizni, or was it a suggestion? I feel like taking a break from all this work."

"Of course. All work and no play is boring. Anyway, it was my decision. She's not really mine, but Zhizni's the horse from the corral that I use and ride. She's like my second life."

_Second life...calling an animal by that is a little weird._ "Most people wouldn't say out of the blue, you know."

Suddenly, Alice's facial expression changed, and she took a deep breath. "If you think about it, owning an animal means you're responsible for it like how you're responsible for your own life, and since you yourself came first, of course Zhizni's my 'second' life."

Alice had a point.

"That's not what I meant." Shun tried to control his anger. It was only his 'second' time 'meeting' Alice, and since the first time was only partially successful, he wasn't going to give up that easily. "Other than your family members, is Zhizni the only other figure in your life that you care about."

"Pretty much."

"No friends?"

That seemed to sadden Alice even more. "I'm working on that..."

"'Working'?" _Her classmates must still be mean to her._

"Well, since we're the only ones here, I'm not afraid to tell you this then." She left go of Zhizni's reigned and walked closer to Shun. "It feels like Zhizni's the only thing that cares for me?"

"Just your horse?" Alice nodded. "What about your aunt and family?"

"They care for me only because we're family. Sure, they feed my stomach with food and mind with knowledge, they don't care about the other stuff. Like my feelings, my emotions, my-"

"Inner thoughts?" That was a wild guess based on prior experience.

"My inner thoughts. My grandfather, for example. If I told him every upsetting moment that I was going through, do you think he can relate? Even worse, what if he tells me it's all ridiculous? I rather say nothing."

_She's still suffering the same problem she suffered back at the beach._ Shun walked over and stroked Zhizni's mane, and Alice was surprised to see that her horse didn't react violently to a stranger. "And if were to tell all this to your horse, it wouldn't understand a thing, but it wouldn't make fun of you, though."

"That's the good side of it."

"So what kind of upsetting moments?"

Alice twitched her mouth upsettingly and answered, "Like when everyone blames you for something that you didn't do or can't control."

Now **this** was different.

"Can you elaborate?"

"Sure. I actually **do** have a couple friends at school but am still working harder to make real friends. But there are this series of unfortunate events that occur around me that scare people away. They think I'm an unlucky person or something."

"Unlucky? Impossible." Shun walked in front of her and held his hands out. "I haven't seen anything weird since I started chatting with you. What kind of unfortunate events."

Alice counted with her fingers. "Let's see...there were water spills, clothes stains, slips and trips, and a lot more. You may be my only non-family exception who's not experiencing any weird things. I don't know how I ended up talking to you about my personal school life. You're...**different**."

And that was no coincidence.

"Hmm. Maybe you're lucky for once."

"Yeah, but I've been like this since my parents passed away. They were always there for me, but afterwards, I felt like I lost the only people in my life who knew the answers to all my questions. Don't you feel like your parents are the ones who seem to know it all?"

"Actually..." The present-day Shun would have a different answer compared to around three years ago. "I'm pretty much lost because my father left and mother died."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. You didn't know." _Yet._ "Do you ever feel like it's your fault your parents left?"

Alice let out a bright grin, but her answer was tot he contrary. "All the time. I thought you'd never ask. What about you?"

"I will never recognize my father leaving us as any of our faults, but I still blame myself for not being able to provide for my mother in times of need. My grandfather did his best."

"So did mine. Maybe I accidentally did something bad some time ago and am being punished for it now."

"Don't blame yourself." Shun brushed a strand of hair out of Alice's face, and all she did was stare at him. It felt like there was already a bond building between the two of them before they officially met a year before present day. "Think of the future. You can achieve a lot more if you move forward and instead of lingering in the past."

She looked at her watch and smiled. "True. I should go home now. Grandfather will be mad. I'll have to walk Zhizni home because of this horseshoe."

"Wait. Get on your horse."

"But I already told you she wouldn't run without all her horse shoes."

"Just get on."

Alice eyed him weirdly but climbed up onto the saddle. "Now what?"

"You'll see." Again, he stroked Zhizni's mane and whispered, "Take Alice home, okay? Don't make her have to walk after a tough day."

Alice's signature giggle came back. "You're not only different, but weird." She tugged on the reigns a little, and Zhizni shook her head and started walking. "And smart."

"I'm just an excellent problem solver."

"That's for sure. I wish you could solve all my problems, too. You can go back to your own sampling work."

Shun almost forgot about the lie he told Alice earlier. "I will. This break from quadrat sampling was long enough."

"Oh, that. Wildflowers are pretty. What's your favorite?

_She remembered my lie better than I did._ "You think so? I like cornflowers. You?"

"Clovers."

_Interesting..._

"Especially **four**-leaf clovers."

Talk about luck.

"Four-leaf clovers aren't just for good luck." Alice continued, slowly facing away Shun. "They suppress your dark side from causing havoc to those around you."

Now what was **that** supposed to mean?

* * *

**Marucho: How are four-leaf clovers wildflowers?**

**Julie: Pretty sure they aren't.**

******Marucho**: But-

**SSR: Four-leaf clovers are related to the basic clover plant, which some _are_ wild flowers. And I did not spell "quadrat" wrong. That's what my science teacher last year taught me.**

**Runo: Life science is life science. Done.**

**SSR: I guess we're all pretty tired. Enjoy the cliffhanger for now! Five days as always, remember?**

**Everyone: Ugh, not _that_ again...**


	6. Putting Things Together

**SSR: Today's Veterans Day, and my friend took me to see a parade downtown of marching veterans. Much thanks to all of them.**

**Everyone: Much thanks to all of them.**

**SSR: Done. My social studies teacher made us write a paper about Veterans Day for homewor.**

**Runo: This has nothing to do with interviewing a veteran, right?**

**SSR: Oh no. Not like the homework for 9-11. ****I decided that this will be a long story because there's a lot I want to talk about, not really fillers. Time to reply to reviews. [Skyress8619], third story? In order of what? Thanks for saying it's awesome, though! [****MagicxMusicxMelody], Julie's absent so Alice and Shun have personal time to talk. Sorry, but it is ending soon. [****Cherry-Tree], I thought no one would mention that again. I don't know if Zhizni will come back. Definitely not a clover, but guess! [alice . kazami ****. 58], the beach was three years ago and field was less slightly less than three years ago, so the math should be easy. [****InnocentDiamond], really? That's cool! I think that's the only time they touched hands. Shun has a LOT to watch out for. [****Cup of Violet Tea], they're the weirdest lies I've written. Alice's problem will take a long time to solve.**

**Marucho: You should get back to working on that paper.**

**SSR: It's almost done. Just need to spell-check, print, and...**

**Dan: She's had a crazy day.**

**Runo: (shrugs) Sugar Spice Rush doesn't own Bakugan or the charm bracelet.**

**Marucho: Somebody get it for her on her next birthday!**

* * *

**Chapter Six**

******Putting Things Together**

...

...

Alice rode off into the distance home on Zhizni, but Shun doubt that Alice knew she was making a trail of fire that burned the surrounding grass.

_What __**was**__ that supposed to mean?_

"Shun! What's the with the blank face?"

"Ah!"

Julie appeared out of nowhere, this time more suddenly than earlier. "Did I scare you? I came back and suddenly saw the fire and wanted to make sure okay."

"Yeah, I'm fine, sort of. Your cloak is on fire..."

"Where?!"

While she was busy putting out the embers that flickered onto her cloak, Shun took the time to explain to Julie what just happened. "Alice now thinks she a vessel of bad luck, which she thinks is the reason why her parents died and people hate her."

"But...that's...so...irrelevant! This cloak sucks!"

"Yeah, moving on. I told her a lie about us here for quadrat sampling, and then she told me her favorite wildflower is a four-leaf clover, which isn't a wildflower itself. I don't understand what she meant by how they can 'suppress your dark side from causing havoc to those around you'."

"Oh? Kind of like using the word 'manifest'. This new phrase is as equally confusing. Open your hand."

Shun held his hand out, and in his palm was another charm, this time a horseshoe charm studded with crystals. "I handed Alice a broken nail earlier. A horseshoe stand for protection and luck."

"When it's faced up and holding in all the good luck, that is. But this is a charm, and you can't attach something onto an empty opening space. Alice's life is getting more and more complicated, but it **still** has nothing to do with her death. We should move on."

"The sooner the better."

...

...

Marucho called Julie back for another discussion. "Have you discovered anything new recently?"

"A lot, actually. We were just about depart for the third time." she replied. "What's wrong?"

"We'll talk about your stuff later. I was looking through various periods of time in Alice's life, and there seems to be a few things off."

"Well, Shun and I have seen a **lot** of things off, only we don't know what to compare it to. What were you saying about an 'mid-life crisis' earlier? And what 'few things off' are you talking about?"

"Take a look at this. It's the period fo time before the beach meeting, and Alice only showed minor signs of worry and secretiveness."

"'Secretiveness'?" Julie wrinkled her forehead and held her arms out. "What secret?"

"That, I don't know. She doesn't talk to people that much, not even her grandfather or aunt."

"Maybe it's because whatever she wants to say would be too awkward to be spoken around them. Shun and Alice were talking about that earlier."

"Hmm." Marucho lit his finger and wrote a note in his imaginary notepad. "I will keep that in mind. Anyway, After seeing Alice talk about witnessing her parents' deaths, I rewinded further back, but because it was too long ago, the details were too blurry to see, and some were even blacked out."

"Maybe because you're watching time pass from the general perspective. If you were to see all that from Alice's eyes, then you'd see something else."

Marucho nodded his head and sighed, making another imaginary note. "Too bad I don't have that power. Going back to the gap between beach and field. I don't what you two did, but Alice's actions became even more secretive. She avoids her grandfather and aunt if possible, but she's also trying to make more friends. Weird."

Julie's jaw remained open after watching a few more scenes. "Okay, maybe that was Shun's fault. Alice **did** say she was making more friends, but more people keep disliking her. That cancels out."

"But what is it about people at school that's different that her family members?"

Marucho and Julie took a moment to walk around and think. "Wait!" Julie exclaimed. "For the first two time travels, every time Alice says something weird and leaves, there's always a weird anomaly that occurs, kind of like present day, as well as a charm on the bracelet I gave Shun that relates to what happened. Oh yeah, my cloak got burnt."

He waved his hands over the charred spots and repaired them. "Done. Weird somethings like...?"

"At the beach, Alice said she always thought there was something manifesting in her that brought all this bad luck. In the fields, she said that four-leaf clovers suppress your dark side from causing havoc. Given these two phrases, it could mean something dark manifested in Alice and created her dark side."

"Which neither one you can prove for certain yet. Considering you visited during the middle of a time travel, I suggest you go back before you're left out by accident."

"Yeah, I don't want that to happen. Bye Marucho!"

After Julie teleported away, Marucho looked for when Shun would meet Alice for the third time. _Let's just hope Shun traveling back in time is __**not**__ the reason why this is all happening._

...

...

For the first time, Shun and Julie got traveled to a period of time with civilization and actual other people.

"Is this Wardington? That means we're back home, sort of. And it's early morning, too."

"We're definitely still way back in time, though. About a month and a half after the 'quadrat sampling' incident."

"Very funny."

The chances of this place being Wardington was ninety-nine percent since Shun knew the area well, but even in from two to three years, many things have changed. "This is where you grew up, right? It looks kind of different than present day Wardington."

Shun stood at the corner of street, staring at the buildings and people. "I never realized how much as changed. You don't notice this kind of stuff when you're living here for these consecutive years. Right now, I feel like a person who moved out of Wardington and comes back three years later to see all the changes."

"But you still haven't 'officially' met Alice."

"Define 'officially.'"

"It could mean when you met Alice the first time at the beach time-wise or when you met Alice a year before present day. Let's walk." Julie turned a corner and walked past a sidewalk of restaurants. Shun followed because he had nowhere else to go. "Speaking of Alice, how did you meet her? Like, tell me the setting in which you met her a year before present day."

Thinking about the past made Shun feel nostalgic yet upset. "At first, we met by accident during a weekend camp activity, but then Dan and Runo said that they originally scheduled Alice and me to be partners for the activity. Alice used to call them 'unofficial matchmakers.'"

"Wow...what a romantic coincidence."

"How so? Coincidence, yeah, but nowhere near romantic. You're weird."

"I k-" Julie was interrupted by a loud echo blast. "What was that?"

"Sounded like a foghorn. I think we're by the harbor. Let's check it out."

"Wait for me!"

Shun rand down the streets of Wardington based on intuition to the ferry, where many ferryboats left the harbor simultaneously one by one. "The ferryboats are making their first trip of the day. That's why they're all leaving together."

"But they don't come back together, do they?"

"Maybe a couple, yeah, but not all."

In the distance, the flip-flap sounds of a girl wearing a giant bonnet running over in sandals resonated. In one hand was a suitcase; in the other were ferry tickets. "Wait for me!"

"Hey! That's what I said earlier."

"Judging by the time one the clock, I think she's late."

A strong breeze blew the girl's tickets and bonnet away. She grabbed the tickets first, but the bonnet was out of her reach. "Aw man."

But it happened to land right in Shun's hands. "Where did this come from?"

"The same girl who's late for her ride?" Julie proposed.

The girl ran over, tying her orange hair into a ponytail. "There it is! Thanks for catching my bonnet."

Once again, Shun couldn't believe his eyes when he saw the girl's face.

* * *

**Julie: I feel very intimidated that Marucho is above me.**

**SSR: But it makes so much sense!**

**Marucho: What does NOT make sense are the inconsistencies I discovered in-**

**SSR: Yeah, we don't need to hear that. This "arc" is kind of different, but I'll explain later.**

**Dan: Because it has civilization?**

**Runo: That was supposed to be a pun, Dan.**

**SSR: I guess. This isn't a cliffhanger much, but situations will clear up soon.**


	7. Question For You

**SSR: Wow, it's already pretty late at night. Just came back from watching 'The Book Thief.' It was so beautiful! Anyway, I'm officially one month old on this site!**

**Everyone: Happy birthday to-**

**Shun: Stop. Since when were birthdays monthly and not yearly?**

**Dan: Dude, stop ruining the fun.**

**SSR: And I will reply to reviews in the mean time. [MagicxMusicxMelody], you said it! Here's today's update. Maybe I'll stop having Alice and Shun introduce their names then. [Cup of Violet Tea], oh true. It would be dead debris by present day. Bad anomaly. X( There'll be a lot of assumptions, and the truth doesn't come out until the end. That's a really cool cause and effect! [Cherry-Tree], maybe I'll give the cloak some magical abilities, like a barrier. I'll explain my idea of 'tickets' later, but it's kind of both your assumptions combined. [Flopi216], thanks for loving it! [RosesOfTruth], actually no. Alice said she loved clovers because they hold down your dark side, but your interpretation exists for another charm/item. [Skyress8619], okay I get it. It's not leading nowhere, but leading to somewhere unknown really slowly. [InnocentDiamond], I saw that coming. Since the anomalies are supernatural, and Julie is from another dimension, maybe it only applies to them? I think I know what show you're talking about. Julie's going to spill all that knowledge someday.**

**Runo: 'Secrets' is done airing! Sixteen episodes of suspense and romance are all out.**

**SSR: Speaking of that drama, I might start another story soon, but then I have to keep up with this one and update Missing Piece someday. Ugh.**

**Dan: Let's do this one story/drama at a time, okay...?**

**Shun: Very unlikely.**

**Runo: Sugar Spice Rush doesn't own Bakugan, FYI!**

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

**Question For You**

...

...

Shun wasn't surprised to see Alice again. After all, it **was** the reason why he was 'traveling in time' in the first place.

"N-No p-problem..." he stuttered. "Here's your bonnet. You should catch your ferry."

Alice grabbed her bonnet and shook her head. "All the ferryboats are gone. Luckily, I bought raincheck tickets, so if I miss the boat I was supposed to take, I can take available boat that comes back, which probably won't be here for an hour..."

The ferry services weren't really popular among the younger generation since it was rather slow and more suitable for middle-aged and elderly people, so Shun was more than curious of why Alice was in a hurry. "Where are you going? You looked like you were in a hurry."

"I'm on vacation, actually. It's Thanksgiving break, so I'm going to visit a friend of mine in Bayview. Too bad my other friend canceled. What a pity."

Meanwhile, Julie went around exploring the town.

_**Two **__friends? That__'__s a major improvement since the last couple times I saw her._ "Isn't Bayview pretty far away and time-consuming for a ferry ride?"

"You'd think the ferry would be slow to take its time because it has to, but no. I find the ferry ride to Bayview the most relaxing and beautiful."

Shun stared out into the water, remembering the beach where he spoke with Alice for the 'first' time. "I guess there **is** a healing side to that."

"I know, right? I love riding the ferry more than the bus or metro. It's so...**romantic**. Reminds me of some film about the Titanic."

"Oh, **that **movie. You said your friend was in Bayview?"

"Yeah."

"How did you guys meet?"

Alice pursed her lips in thought, sitting down on the bench with her legs crossed. Shun sat down as well. "It's a bittersweet story, really. She was my best and only friend at school but moved to Bayview because her parents' company moved. I felt like a piece of me is gone." She rubbed her eyes and put on a pair of sunglasses.

"You miss her a lot, don't you?"

"How can I not? Anyway, I'm going to see her soon. She moved in the middle of the school year, so we still have a few stuff in common to talk about." Alice took out her phone and turned on the screen, revealing a picture of her and another girl in the background. "Look. We took this during PE after our tag team won the relay race. Weren't we happy?"

Shun couldn't help but smile at the fact that Alice made even just **one** friend. _Maybe all that talk we had a while ago really paid off_. "Your 'best' and 'only' friend? I can see why you dedicated your Thanksgiving break to visit her. How long has it been since she moved?"

"Half a month, maybe. We took this picture on a Friday, and on the next Monday, she was gone."

"Ever thought of inviting her back to Wardington for a couple days?"

"I...I don't know." She put her phone away quickly, and Shun sensed something was up. "She doesn't even know I'm going."

"How? I thought you were visiting her." _So this is why she's kind of frustrated, but it's definitely not it. There's more to it._

"Relax. These tickets are for a one-way ride between Wardington to Bayview, whether from here to there or vice versa. My other friend—a guy, my best friend's understudy—and I were supposed to visit my best friend as a surprise. We had in mind to stay at her house for the night and buy new tickets the next day. But he canceled."

"So what are you going to do with the tickets now?"

"I don't know. Either I'll visit my friend as a surprise or just ride to Bayview and stay for my entire break. I have a lot of money. The ferry ride takes a long time, but I don't care."

But Shun wanted to cut to the chase. "But what do **you** want to do?"

Alice growled, taking her sunglasses off and resting her face in the palms of her hands. "Sure. I might as well spend my entire break in Bayview, but it's not the first time I've ridden there."

"Why do you say that?" That answer was **really** out of the blue.

"Every time I board the ferry, I always know it'll be a long ride. Sometimes I wish the ferryboat won't dock or reach it's destination. Sometimes I wish it'll just keep moving in the water."

_Here comes her frustration._ "Why? Does it upset you?"

"No, but it's the slowest and most time consuming thing ever. Not that it's bad, but I just want to waste away or stall time so I can skip all the the other things that would be happening now or at least delay them."

"What kind of things?"

Alice shook her head. "You wouldn't understand." The foghorn echoed again, and people swarmed to the gates, even though not a single ferryboat was in sight. "I should still go to Bayview anyway and take a chance."

Shun shrugged his shoulders, seeing that she wouldn't talk. "If you insist. One-way or two-way?"

She stared into the water in thought. "Maybe one-way for now."

"Can I have your other ticket?"

Now Alice focused her stare on Shun. "You asked a lot of questions today."

"So?"

"So..." She walked up to him with the other ticket in front of her face. "I'll give you this ticket for free if you answer my question."

"Go ahead."

After a silent pause of backing up, Alice asked, "Why are you here?"

Shun didn't see that coming.

...

...

"Here you go, little lady."

The cart vendor gave Julie her hot dog and cup of soda, and Julie paid him with 'legitimate' money that she magically created. "Thanks, sir! Keep the change!" Walking down the streets with food in her mouth, Julie looked up and around at the tall buildings. "This place is magnificent. I hope there wasn't much change as Shun said."

Down the street she was walking were more food vendors, and Julie could as much food as she want—after all, her money was 'unlimited'—but she'd have no more hands to carry and couldn't eat them all at once. Instead, Julie crossed the street to the department stores.

_Julie, now's not the time to be shopping!_ Julie shook her head at the thought and decided to head back to the harbor. "Shun must be waiting for me. I've been away for almost an hour now." She stuffed the hot dog into her mouth and ran quickly to the corner of the street.

"Get out."

Julie froze in position.

Someone said something, but she couldn't tell where it came from. Cars zoomed past quickly yet quietly, and all the stores on the sidewalk still hadn't opened yet. Who could've said that too her?

The answer laid in a tiny alley between two stores.

Julie swallowed the hot dog and went inside, unsure of what she was going to find. _Julie, you should be at the harbor by now. No point searching for someone_. Her instincts told her to go deeper but stopped when she reached a dumpster. "What a waste of time."

Not.

The moment Julie turned around, she saw someone—most likely a guy based on body build—standing a few feet away from her. He walked closer, leaving Julie nowhere to go.

"You shouldn't be here. Neither should he."

What scared Julie more was that he had a bladed weapon in the hand that was aimed for her.

* * *

**SSR: No charm today. Sorry. :(**

**Dan: Dang, Alice knows how to get back at people.**

**Shun: Not yet though.**

**Julie: Why are you doing this to me?!**

**SSR: Say what? What did I do wrong?**

**Julie: Not you, my attacker.**

**SSR: Oh...wait, who?!**

**Runo: That's not very funny.**

**SSR: Right, this is a terrible time to be talking about this. I don't think it's important to bring up who Alice's friends are. They're just _friends_. Please review!**


	8. Can't Leave Yet

**SSR: Finally! It's raining! First day of rain in...I don't even remember.**

**Runo: And you know what that means? (many umbrellas in hands)**

**Dan: What the heck?**

**SSR: Oh, Runo. I wasn't serious about throwing the them away! But I don't need them right now because I'm staying in a cozy classroom right now.**

**Marucho: Speaking of cozy, I should turn the heater higher. (leaves)**

**SSR: Wait! Oh, nevermind. Now for the reviews. [****MagicxMusicxMelody], I didn't realize I had a pattern! Now that you mention it, I'm not sure if there's a strong word in this chapter. [****InnocentDiamond], thanks! How was the movie? Yeah, it's a selca. You noticed a pattern, too? Awesome! That pattern's easier to manage. [****Flopi216], that person would be the attacker, but I won't go into detail yet. [****RosesOfTruth], so you noticed? That guy's going to come back soon but not often. [****Cup of Violet Tea], I think all her conversations have an underlying meaning. Scary trick questions indeed. Julie knows how to defend herself, no worries. [****Cherry-Tree], good idea, yes, but maybe a little too coincidental. What he'll do with the ticket is a loophole, as you'll see.**

**Runo: At least you told me you didn't mean it.**

**SSR: Come on. No umbrellas in the rain happens only in romantic shows. Those umbrellas are mine, but not Bakugan.**

**Runo: You said so. (throws umbrellas at me)**

**SSR: Ugh, seriously?!**

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

**Can't Leave Yet**

...

...

_Think, Julie, think. What did Marucho and Kato teach you about self defense?_

Not only was Julie pretty much cornered, but the sun was was shining from the other side, so the buildings' shadows covered her attacker's face. She was completely stuck, and retaliation may be her only choice.

"What do you want? I don't know who you are or what you're talking about."

Julie ignored the guy and left the alley like nothing happened, but he blocked her and placed his knife in front of him. "You know what I mean. I'm not even going to tell you to leave while you can because I need you two gone."

He held the hand with the weapon back and flung toward Julie, but now she had space behind her to run backwards and around him. The attacker swung the blade at Julie again, but this time, she drew a circle, creating a palm-sized compact mirror and reflecting the faint streaks sunlight, now reflecting in the right direction. And because Julie created the mirror with magic, it shined the light twice as bright at her attacker. "Try attacking me now."

"Darn." he muttered under his breath, dropping his weapon on the floor. "You may have gotten away this time, but I'll be back and after you two. You can't get off my radar."

Julie made a run for it and turned to look back only once. Even with his hand in the way, she could tell he was wearing a shiny mask that reflected in the sunlight. _Wouldn__'__t that mask be able to block most of the sunlight? I don__'__t get it._ It was only one glance, but that didn't matter. What's important was that Julie was safe and sound...for now.

After that was a loud foghorn echo in the air. _The next ferry ride is here. I really need to go back._ Meanwhile, her attacker walked out of the alley and watched Julie as she ran down the streets back to the harbor.

_Julie Makimoto...__you'd better watch where you're going.._

...

...

"Why are you here?"

Alice stared straight at Shun, not moving a single inch. Her handbag dangled from one hand, but her crossed arms remained balanced. Shun feared that he was exposed, but since he managed to bluff his way past Alice before, he can still do it again. Only, this was his third time meeting Alice in the past, and based on past experience, will it still work on this third try?

"Why do you ask?"

Again, she waved the ticket in front of her. "You want this ticket? Then answer my question." Alice walked up to him tauntingly, but Shun didn't move a muscle. "No one would just walk up to a stranger and ask such personal questions. You have motive."

"Maybe because you're not a stranger to me."

Apparently, they both took that by surprise. Shun didn't himself to say that, and neither was Alice expecting that kind of answer.

"I'm...what?!"

"You remind me a lot of a really close friend of mine. She was just exactly like you, only..."

"Only what?" Alice's soft tone indicated she wasn't as mad as before.

As for Shun, he took a long pause before answering, because the answer wasn't as simple as it sounded. "Only she passed away."

Alice seemed a bit frightened, for she clutched her bag and tickets tighter.

"That's nothing for you to worry about. It's just so...**nostalgic**. Not that I think you're her, though."

"I hope not." she muttered. "Why don't you tell me about her instead?"

Shun glanced at the incoming ferryboats and asked, "Don't you have a ride coming?"

"I can always wait for the next one. Plus, just because you hear their foghorns doesn't mean they'll be here in five minutes. What was she like?"

_She didn't even say "I'm sorry to hear that" or the like, and I didn't say that the person who 'passed' away was in fact her._ He brushed the complicated thought aside and replied, "She was a lot like you. Nice, sweet, and caring. She had a lot more friends than you, no offence."

Alice giggled at the last comment, reminding Shun of the past times in which his words made Alice laugh before. "I'm probably the only exception among everyone."

"She was like that once, too." he reassured, bringing some relief to Alice. "If she can do it, then so can you."

"Not when you know someone's out there to prevent you from doing so."

"H-How?" This was getting more serious. "Who's after you? Why would you think someone out there's-" The foghorn sounded for a third time. The ferryboat to blow its horn reached the harbor, and the second one was about to cross under the bridge in the distance.

"I should get going. I already missed the first ride and can't miss the second one now." From her bag, she pulled out another ticket. "I didn't expect you to answer more than just that one question of mine, so I might as well give you two tickets. This third one is a one-way ticket that I've kept for a while. You can have it."

She handed the ticket to Shun, who received slowly, not sure if Alice really meant it. "Are you serious? I don't know how else to thank-"

"Then don't." Alice held her index finger up in front of Shun's mouth and back in front of hers. "We both got what we want. There's no need to thank each other."

"True. I understand that talking to a stranger like me isn't always safe, but considering that you're willing to talk to me about your personal things, maybe your fate will change."

"Maybe." Alice put on her bonnet and sunglasses. "Got to go. Rest in peace to your friend, by the way."

"Thanks." _You have no idea that you're actually saying RIP to yourself_. "Be safe. Maybe we'll se each other again."

"Maybe to that too." Before entering the small gate, she turned around and said, "Maybe we're not strangers after all."

Now that got Shun worrying.

_It's just a saying. She's just talking in the the way you were talking earlier._ In Shun's hand was a frog charm, another addition to the charm bracelet. "A frog for a safe journey. Alice's isn't traveling that far-"

"Shun!" Julie ran quickly over to him with her hand pounding her chest. "That was scary. Never ever go downtown alone."

"What happened?"

"I was buying food, right? You see this cup of soda? I was walking back in this direction back here, then I heard this guy say 'Get out.' So I went to take a look and ended up in an alley, where this guy tried to attack me with a knife or dagger! Then he acted all executioner or assassin on me, but I created a mirror and temporarily blinded him. Thank goodness I left in time."

Shun pounded his chest at the thought, too. "It actually feels scarier that **I'm** not the one being chased after here. This time, I got a frog charm. Should we get going?"

"The sooner the better." For a moment, they both laughed since that was the phrase Shun said not long ago after leaving the fields. "Wait, why aren't we moving?"

"Did you waste all your energy against the guy?"

"No! I just made a compact mirror!"

"Then how come-"

"Ribbit."

What a surprise.

"Julie, you hear that?"

"Ribbit." After that, was a small _thud_ sound.

"Look behind you." Julie pointed to the ferryboat directly behind Shun. On the railing was an average-sized green frog, perched and expanding it's throat. On the side, a trail of few more green frogs hopped over to the railing of the harbor. "Where did they come from?"

"A frog stands for safe journey, and Alice's is going to Bayview, so-"

All the frogs jumped into the water at once.

And in the window behind the frog that was on the boat railing was vaguely a man with a mask on, his angry clenched teeth being the only visible feature on his face.

"That's the guy that tried to kill me!"

"That's the ferryboat that Alice boarded..."

It didn't take long for them to realize what one plus the other could've meant.

* * *

**SSR: This is a more obvious cliffhanger.**

**Runo: But it's still a cliffhanger!**

**SSR: I'm stuck in a classroom for lunch because it's raining, so I was bored.**

**Dan: That explains everything.**

**Marucho: Uh...I don't know where the heater is.**

**SSR: That's what I was trying to tell you. It's in the faculty room.**

**Everyone: Aw man...**

**SSR: No worries! Just leave a review!**

**Everyone: (shivering) For...our...sake...**

**SSR: Come on, just close the door.**


End file.
